Ottawa’s former top judge has been named the new chief justice of Canada’s largest court.

Lise Maisonneuve was appointed as the new chief justice of the Ontario Court of Justice on Thursday. Maisonneuve, the former regional senior judge for eastern Ontario and current associate chief justice, will replace Chief Justice Annemarie Bonkalo when her eight-year term ends on May 3.

Maisonneuve is the second woman to be named chief justice of the court, and the first francophone chief justice.

“I am thrilled to have been offered the opportunity to be able to continue my judicial administrative career and to serve the people of Ontario as the next chief justice of the Ontario Court of Justice,” Maisonneuve told the Citizen Friday. “Having worked under the warm and inspiring leadership of Chief Justice Bonkalo, I am committed to continuing the court’s goals of making the justice system more modern and accessible for litigants.”

As associate chief justice, Maisonneuve has been responsible for court initiatives related to court modernization, judicial education, public legal education and addressing criminal court delay, among others. The Ontario Court of Justice oversees matters related to criminal and family law, hearing more than 200,000 criminal cases and millions of provincial offences such as traffic tickets.

Maisonneuve had presided over criminal court cases in Ottawa for 12 years prior to being named associate chief justice in 2013. She was appointed as the local administrative judge overseeing Ottawa’s court in 2008 and then rose to regional senior justice for eastern Ontario in 2011, where she oversaw judges in courts stretching from Cornwall to Belleville, along with Ottawa and its surrounding communities.

Maisonneuve was the judge who sentenced John Tobin, the son of former Newfoundland premier Brian Tobin, to three years in prison after he killed a friend while doing doughnuts in a rented truck while drunk in a ByWard Market parking garage on Christmas Eve 2010. She also acquitted Margaret Trudeau of impaired driving in a much publicized case in 2005, finding that the police officer who arrested Trudeau violated her Charter rights.

Before becoming a judge, Maisonneuve practised criminal law as a partner with the Ottawa firm of Carroll, Wallace and Maisonneuve. She was special legal adviser to the late chief justice of Canada Brian Dickson on various military investigations.

Maisonneuve graduated from the University of Ottawa Law School in 1989 and was called to the bar in 1991.

Born and raised in Timmins, Ont., Maisonneuve’s father was a saw filer at a mill while her mother stayed home with Maisonneuve and her five siblings. She is the first person born and raised in Northern Ontario to serve as the chief justice.

Ottawa defence lawyer Mark Ertel, who has known Maisonneuve since law school and had worked with her when he was president of the Defence Counsel Association of Ottawa, said Maisonneuve was a great choice as chief justice.

Maisonneuve is a forward thinker and hard worker who excels at finding solutions, Ertel said. One of her innovations was a trial readiness court in Ottawa aimed at reducing wasted court time, he said.

“I remember thinking at law school she was going to go places,” said Ertel. “The province will be well served by her.”

In announcing the appointment, Attorney General and Ottawa-Vanier MPP Madeleine Meilleur praised Maisonneuve as a “strong leader, an effective collaborator and determined advocate for modernization and continuous improvement in our courts.”

Maisonneuve is expected to be sworn in as the new chief justice at a ceremony in Toronto.

This Week's Flyers

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.